Hard Copy

Electronic documentation is on the rise--so why is your office
still far from paperless? Don't feel bad. Paper is and will
continue to be a primary element in even the most modern of
offices, says Keith T. Davidson, executive director of Xplor
International, an electronic document systems industry association.
According to Davidson, there are four solid reasons why the
paperless office won't be here any time soon:

First, paper is permanent. No other method of information
storage and retrieval matches paper's durability.

Second, paper plays a significant role in our legal system.
"Paper has been built into our common law," Davidson
says. "It's why you need an original instead of a
copy."

Third, paper is part of our society's traditions and
institutions. Though newspapers, magazines and books may be
expanding electronically, their paper versions will remain.

Finally, Davidson says, "Paper is the ideal human
interface. It's the way we learn and communicate."

The truly efficient office will be able to blend electronic and
paper documents. Davidson says an information technology plan
should include a document strategy to accomplish this.

"Identify how your documents manage and contribute to your
business processes," Davidson says. "Consider your
document flow as part of your information system, not something
that happens at the end of it." Understanding where and why
you need paper is an essential element of successfully using
electronic technologies.

It's also important, Davidson says, to keep technology in
perspective. "What is the single most important information-
processing invention of the past 30 years?" he asks, rejecting
answers such as the computer or fax machine. "My candidate is
the Post-it Note because it's the epitome of
user-friendliness."

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